All-New Sessions and
Topics for 2006
Mar 1, 2006 12:00 PM
Ben Kozuch, conference chairperson of NAB Post|Production World Conference, is also the president and co-founder of Future Media Concepts, the nation’s premier digital media training organization for editing, motion graphics, web development, and sound design. Kozuch holds a BA in Engineering from Tel Aviv University and is a graduate of the Air Force Academy as a fighter pilot. He holds an MBA in International Business from the European School of Management in Paris.
If there's one thing Ben Kozuch values above all else, it's producing conference sessions that provide attendees with practical information they can use immediately to enhance their productivity. He's also a strong believer in producing conferences that don't rely on recycled information from previous years.
Given those guiding principles, it's understandable why, in just two years time, the NAB Post|Production World Conference has become one of the most successful conferences at the NAB show. It's also the reason why Kozuch is confident that anyone who attended last year's NAB Post|Production World Conference will be delighted by what they find at this year's conference.
“All of the sessions at this year's conference have been completely refreshed,” says Kozuch, the conference chairperson and president and co-founder of Future Media Concepts (FMC). “None of the content is the same. In addition, we have several new tracks, twice as many certification classes as before, and a new NAB Podcasting Summit that's already proving to be immensely popular.”
First introduced at NAB2004, the NAB Post|Production World Conference was developed by NAB in partnership with FMC, the nation's premier digital media training center. Geared primarily at intermediate and advanced users, the conference provides in-depth instructional sessions that help postproduction professionals enhance their creative, technical and business skills. This year the conference offers more than 200 sessions divided into 16 different tracks, making it easily the largest postproduction educational conference in the world.
In its first year, the conference attracted 1,200 attendees. Last year it attracted 1,400. This year, given the rave reviews offered by past attendees, that growth is expected to continue. And to help encourage past attendees to come back again, the conference is even offering special alumni pricing and special alumni gift packs.
John Marino is vice president of science and technology for the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and is responsible for the development of the many technology-oriented conferences and seminars presented by NAB. Marino’s broadcast experience extends over 20 years and includes the positions of vice president of engineering and director of engineering for a number of broadcast groups.
“We produce many conferences during the NAB show, and the Post|Production World Conference is one of the most successful,” says John Marino, NAB's vice president of science and technology. “By offering this unique conference to postproduction professionals, we feel we are meeting the need to educate our show attendees in digital media.”
Nearly all of the conference classes will be hands-on sessions, where each student is outfitted with a laptop computer.
Get Started in Boot Camp
The conference will kick off on Friday, April 21 with a software Boot Camp. The Boot Camp is targeted at users who need to brush up on their familiarity with a few key software programs before plunging into the more advanced courses that form the meat of the conference.
The FastStart sessions of the Boot Camp, says Kozuch, have proven to be even more popular over the last two years than he anticipated, especially among those looking to diversify their skill sets. “These days you can't thrive off just one software program,” he says. “You can't be just an editor. You also need to know how to use Photoshop, how to create special effects, or how to prepare your show for DVD authoring or web delivery. You have to be multi-purposed. The Boot Camp is a great way to get up to speed on some different programs.”
Each of the 16 FastStart sessions runs three hours. Among the programs being covered this year are Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, Autodesk 3ds max, Autodesk Maya, Macromedia Flash, Adobe Photoshop, Apple DVD Studio, and Newtek Lightwave.
Friday also marks the start of the conference's certified training classes. This year, the conference is offering twice as many certification classes as before, giving attendees the option to become certified in many more programs. In addition to the Avid Xpress Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, and the Apple Motion courses offered last year, this year's offerings include classes in Apple DVD Studio Pro, Sony Vegas, Adobe PhotoShop CS2, Adobe Premiere, and Adobe After Effects. continued...
